At what size do the founding partners of small firms make “big law partner money”. 5 attorneys? 10? I’m sure it varies, but interested to hear thoughts.

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It really doesn’t go by size. I’ve known solos (with employees) who made more than the average biglaw partner - especially on the plaintiffs’ side. On the defense side, it’s a little bit harder because generally smaller firms have lower rates, but then the attorneys also keep more of the fees. I know many small firm lawyers who have made as much as biglaw partners. It mostly depends on how business oriented the attorneys are.

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Agreed. Most attorneys are awful business people and financially never make it. If you have the drive and acumen you can make a ton of money. I'm in a smaller plaintiffs firm, which to be fair has a storied history for where I am, and they make gobs of money; multiples of 7 figures. On the other hand, the partners at the ID firms make very little. Just depends.

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Really depends on practice and their marketing efforts. I know a plaintiff shop where they’re doing north of $2m+ in revenue a month, and the name partner is making $5-$7m+ a year from that. I also know small shops with 5-10 lawyers doing estate planning making $300k-$400k a year

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So far, 5 is not enough. That said, I prefer my quality of life to that of a big firm partner, but I'm not compensated like a big firm equity partner, or even close.

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What is generally considered “big law partner money”?

Yeah it’s 1-4 million

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